Tomb raiding live stream: Starting as the mute Zhang

The suspended staircase clings to the cold, bronze pillars, spiraling upwards.

Each step was badly rusted, producing a chilling creaking sound that echoed subtly in the vast vertical space. The heavy bronze chains were cold and slippery, requiring all one's strength to grip them securely.

A ghostly blue glow emanated from within the colossal pillar, unevenly illuminating its surface. The intricate, dazzling reliefs, at such close range, revealed even more grotesque and eerie details. Twisted human figures seemed to struggle within the bronze, shadows flickering deep within the pupils of various eye patterns, and incomprehensible geometric symbols arranged and combined to subtly form a recurring rhythm.

As Wu Xie struggled to climb upwards, he tried to tear his gaze away from the unsettling reliefs and focus on the suspended ladder beneath his feet and the chains in his hands. But the patterns seemed to have a life of their own, constantly trying to penetrate his field of vision.

"I mean... what the hell is all that rubbish carved on here..." Fatty Wang complained, panting heavily from below. His weight made the groaning of the suspended ladder particularly jarring. "It's enough to give you the creeps."

"It's like... a narrative," Wu Xie forced himself to analyze calmly, his voice slightly shaky in the empty space, "Look at this part, these human figures are kneeling around something... is that thing shaped like a jade cong? And here, these people are tied to pillars, with holes in their chests..."

"Stop interpreting it," the fat man interrupted him. "The more you interpret it, the scarier it gets! Focus on climbing, I think this ladder is about to give way!"

"Fatty, say less," Hei Xiazi said, his voice relatively calm as he sat above Wu Xie. "Save your energy. Even the mute Zhangs haven't said a word."

At the very top, Zhang Qiling and "Zhang Qiling" remained silent. Their climb was slow but extremely steady, as if they felt no fatigue or fear. Their gazes occasionally swept over the reliefs on the pillar, their eyes focused, seemingly trying to quickly decipher and understand the obscure information.

After climbing another twenty meters or so, the eerie blue glow seemed to brighten slightly. On the giant pillar ahead, a larger area of ​​relief sculpture appeared, with even more intricate carvings.

The content of the reliefs has changed. They are no longer simple scenes of sacrifice or punishment, but a series of more complex, more... bizarre images.

The first image depicts countless tiny human figures gathered beneath a giant tree (somewhat similar in form to the bronze pillar, but more like a plant), kneeling in worship towards its top. At the treetop, a radiant, blurry ring is carved.

The second image depicts several large, specially rendered human figures who seem to have received light from the tree and merged into themselves through some kind of ritual (the jade cong-shaped object and flowing liquid are at the center of the image). Their posture appears solemn and...powerful.

The third image shows these radiant humanoids leading their tribes in hunting, building, and fighting wild beasts or enemies. They appear to be incredibly strong and tireless.

Fourth image: As time passes (represented by layers of ripples), the human figures that once received light begin to change. Some bodies twist, growing extra limbs or eyes; some seem to melt, merging with the surrounding rocks and trees; only a very few retain the form of "human," but their faces are sculpted into an unusually blurred state, as if shrouded in mist.

The fifth image depicts the remaining human figures gathering together to perform a grander and more bizarre ritual. They circled a central, intricate, multi-layered bronze structure (somewhat resembling the giant pillar) and poured their "radiance" (represented in the image as filaments of light emanating from their chests) into it. Then, they entered the bronze structure and vanished.

The sixth image depicts a bronze structure that, after absorbing all the "light," sinks into the earth. The edges of the image are depicted with shifting stars and undulating mountains, representing the passage of countless years.

Here the relief becomes blurred and discontinuous, and finally disappears completely, leaving only the original twisted basic patterns of the bronze pillar.

"This is..." Wu Xie was so engrossed in looking at it that he almost lost his footing, but luckily he held on tightly to the chains. "This...this describes 'immortality'? Or...the bestowal of some kind of power and its price?"

"It's not immortality," Zhang Qiling's voice came from above. He stopped in front of a relief and lightly touched a human figure in the fourth image with a twisted body and extra eyes. "It's... mutation."

"Power comes at a price." Zhang Qiling also looked at those images, his gaze falling on the bronze structure that finally sank into the earth. "They 'stored' themselves inside it."

"Deposit it?" Fatty Wang didn't understand. "Deposit what? How do I deposit it?"

"Consciousness? Or... something else?" Xie Yuchen's voice was filled with shock and contemplation. "Judging from this description, what they seem to be pursuing is not physical immortality, but some form of... continuation of existence. To preserve some aspect of themselves through this bronze structure, waiting for... what?"

"Waiting for those who come after," Huo Xiuxiu said softly, her face pale. "Look at the first picture, the light at the top of the tree... that might represent some kind of 'source' from... a higher level, or an ancient existence. They gained power, but also suffered the price of alienation. In the end, the survivors chose to 'store' the part of themselves related to this source here, perhaps to avoid complete alienation, perhaps... to leave clues, or... a trap."

This interpretation sent chills down everyone's spine. If the reliefs depict real history, then this colossal bronze pillar might not be a simple sacrificial structure, but rather a massive container used to "store" the "qualities" of those ancient beings. The kneeling bronze figurines, the "copper heart" outside, and even this entire bizarre system might all be byproducts of this "storage" process, or the "fuel" that keeps the system running.

"Keep going." Zhang Qiling didn't say anything more about the interpretation. He withdrew his gaze and began climbing again. But Wu Xie noticed that his gaze as he looked up into the darkness was more solemn than before.

"Zhang Qiling" also quietly followed suit.

The suspended staircase seemed to have reached its end. Ahead, on the side of the colossal pillar, appeared a protruding bronze platform, roughly ten square meters in size. The platform's edge had low railings, also carved with eye-like patterns. A narrow, upward-facing staircase extended from one side of the platform, hugging the surface of the colossal pillar, continuing upwards.

The top of the suspended ladder connects to the edge of this platform.

Zhang Qiling was the first to step onto the platform. The platform was very stable, with a fine, non-slip texture on its surface. He quickly scanned the platform, and after confirming it was safe, he gestured for the others to come up.

One by one, everyone climbed onto the platform, finally able to temporarily escape the terrifying suspended ladder and stand firmly on solid ground (albeit bronze). Everyone was exhausted, some sitting, some leaning, panting heavily. Fatty Wang collapsed onto the platform like a lump of mud.

"Finally... I can rest for a while... This fat man's bones..."

"Save your energy," Wu Xie said, sitting down against the railing, but his gaze was immediately drawn to something on the inner side of the platform and the giant pillar wall.

What was there was no longer a relief, but an inlaid, enormous, dark blue jade disc. The jade disc was rectangular, about two meters high and more than one meter wide, with a smooth, mirror-like surface and intricate cloud and thunder patterns decorating its edges. Inside the jade disc, a liquid-like glow seemed to flow slowly, occasionally condensing into indistinct characters or patterns that would vanish in a flash.

Directly in front of the jade disc, on the platform floor, there is a recessed circular area. Within this area is engraved a complex star map, and in the center of the star map is a palm-sized, shallow, bowl-shaped groove.

"What kind of mechanism is this?" Black Bear walked up to the jade wall and examined it carefully. The jade wall reflected his blurry figure and the endless dark abyss behind him, making it look particularly eerie.

"We need a medium." Xie Yuchen observed the star map and the grooves. "Look at this star map; it corresponds to some of the patterns on the metal plate we obtained from the underwater tomb in the Xisha Islands. The size and shape of these grooves..."

He looked at Zhang Qiling.

Zhang Qiling had already reached the jade disc. He didn't take out the jade eye or the bone fragment, but instead rolled up his left sleeve again, revealing the small wound that had just congealed. He gently pressed the edge of the wound with his fingertip, squeezing out a drop of blood, which dripped into the groove in the center of the star map.

The drop of blood did not disperse, but instead condensed in the center of the groove like mercury, slowly rotating.

Then, the entire star map seemed to come alive, and each of the star-shaped engravings began to glow faintly. The light flowed along the engravings, eventually converging on the blood droplet in the center.

The blood droplet absorbed the light and suddenly became bright, emitting a soft red glow with pale gold veins.

The red light shone on the jade disc in front of me.

The smooth surface of the jade disc rippled like a stone breaking the stillness of water. From the center of the ripples, clear images and words began to emerge.

It's not a relief sculpture, but more like some kind of stored, dynamic image fragment; although blurry and disjointed, it's still recognizable.

The image depicts an elderly man dressed in extremely ancient and indescribable clothing. His hair and beard are entirely white, and his face is shrouded in the blurring effect of the jade disc, making it difficult to see clearly, but one can sense a profound weariness and...compassion. He stands in what appears to be an altar, with countless kneeling figures behind him.

The old man's lips moved silently, but lines of twisted ancient characters appeared on the jade disc, the characters seemingly flowing. Xie Yuchen and Huo Xiuxiu immediately held their breath to decipher them, and Wu Xie quickly took out his notebook.

"Those who come after us will find this letter as if they have met the person in person."

"Our clan was ordained by Heaven to guard the 'gate' gap, originally to protect the living beings of this place and isolate the evil forces of the other side."

"However, as time goes by, people's hearts gradually change. Some greedy people try to steal the power behind the door in order to transcend their lifespan and enjoy longevity. Once this thought arises, disaster begins."

"We used blood as a catalyst and souls as a sacrifice to forge this 'Pillar of Return to the Ruins,' intending to strengthen the seal and suppress evil thoughts. Alas... the power from the other side erodes the mind and invades our bloodline. Those who obtain it initially gain supernatural abilities, gradually become inhuman, and eventually decay, becoming either puppets of the pillar or gatekeepers, forever sinking into depravity."

"The elders and I know the enormity of our sins, and that it is too late for repentance. Therefore, we entrust our remaining spiritual essence to this jade, leaving this warning."

"Immortality is illusory; the gate must not be opened. Those who remain within the pillar will suffer misfortune rather than fortune. Those who come after, if they are to guard the gate, should carry on my will, protect the pillar, eliminate delusions, and suppress evil thoughts. If they are merely seeking out the truth... leave quickly, and never touch the core of the pillar, nor allow the 'key' to become one with the other, otherwise... the gate will open, and great calamity will befall you."

"Cut it."

The text abruptly stopped there. The image and the old man's figure on the jade disc quickly dimmed and disappeared, finally returning to a smooth, dark blue color, with only the liquid-like glow within still slowly flowing.

The platform was deathly silent. Only the cold air blowing up from the abyss below brushed against everyone's faces.

The levitating live-streaming sphere recorded the entire process of the jade disc developing its appearance. After a long period of silence, only a few comments appeared in the live-stream chat.

Prophet: The amount of information is overwhelming...

A solution to the "experts'" dissent: Did the gatekeeper mess things up himself?

Brother's fan club: Husbands, don't touch that "core of the pillar"!

"Key and key combined..." Wu Xie murmured repeatedly, then looked abruptly at the jade eye in Zhang Qiling's hand, and then at "Zhang Qiling".

The unified jade eye... isn't that complete? What else is needed?

"The core of the pillar..." Xie Yuchen's face was extremely grim. "Does it refer to the core of this bronze giant pillar? Inside... does it 'retain' the... spirits of those ancient gatekeeper elders? Or rather, the lingering, corrupted consciousness of their mutated selves?"

"It's a disaster," Zhang Qiling said slowly, looking at the jade disc.

"Don't touch it," Zhang Qiling said, his tone resolute.

"But we..." Fatty Wang looked at the stairs that still stretched into the darkness above, then at the abyss below. "We're stuck here, going up or going down. We can't possibly spend the night on this platform, can we? The warning told us not to touch the core, it didn't say we couldn't go up and take a look..."

Before he could finish speaking, from the endless darkness above everyone's heads, a sound suddenly came— (The sound was extremely faint, yet incredibly clear.)

"Thump."

It was as if something enormous, deep within, gently... throbbed.